Both the U.S. and (the People’s Republic of) China are trying to establish the first lunar outposts, and it is possible that we will see lunar colonies within our lifetimes. When that happens, do you think there will be a movement towards independence, just as the colonies of Britain, France, Spain, etc. vyed for freedom? Would this be peaceful or violent, and how would either work? How realistic is an independent lunar nation, given the hostile living conditions? What would lunar culture look like? Would it be a mix of American and Chinese culture, or something new entirely?

Or do you think the Moon and other bodies in our Solar System will become internationally run (and protected) areas, a bit like how Antarctica is on Earth?

  • NaibofTabr@infosec.pubEnglish
    12·
    1 day ago

    Long-term habitation of the moon is going to be extremely difficult if not impossible. The ground itself is hostile to human technology and life:

    As the Moon’s fine surface layer, lunar regolith is picked up by even weak natural phenomena active at the Moon’s surface, allowing it to be part of the Moon’s scant atmosphere. It is easily disturbed and poses a significant hazard to exposed equipment and human health. The fine lunar regolith is made of sharp and very adhesive particles, with a distinct gunpowder taste and smell.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lunar_regolith

    Basically there are no erosion processes on the moon. On Earth, rock gets worn down over time by wind and water, which tumbles all the small particles and rounds off the sharp esges. On the moon, rocks get pulverized by meteorite impacts, and then the dust settles back down and sits there because there’s not enough atmosphere for wind. Instead of soft rounded sand, you have very fine fragmented rock with sharp edges.

    Even worse, it’s electrically charged so it tends to stick to surfaces and the astronauts found that it was very difficult to remove.

    So, imagine all of the difficulties of maintaining mechanical equipment in the desert, with worse dust that will degrade equipment even faster than it does on Earth, plus you have to maintain all your exterior equipment while wearing a space suit which is at the same time collecting and being degraded by the lunar dust. The fine grit will get inside of every mechanical joint, every seal gap, and wear them down very quickly. It’s like chalk dust made of knives, with static cling.

    It will be functionally impossible to keep it out of any long-term habitat completely. Breathing the fine particulates will probably result in silicosis-like symptoms, and:

    Anecdotal reports of human exposures to lunar dust during the Apollo program suggest that lunar dust has toxic properties. After each EVA, the crew modules were heavily contaminated with dust; many astronauts reported coughs, throat irritation, watery eyes, and blurred vision that likely reduced their performance. A flight surgeon exposed to the capsule interiors after recovery developed what appeared to be allergic reactions to lunar dust that worsened after each exposure.

    Machines and people will both break down in this environment. Keeping a presence there would require a constant stream of replacement parts, maintenance supplies, and personnel rotation.

    Techniques for addressing the problems this will cause are all theoretical proposals. Personally, I think we’ll need another two or three generations of materials science before we can actually handle this problem.